


Insight Over Tea

by Kartaylir



Category: Books of the Raksura - Martha Wells
Genre: Extra Treat, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-28
Updated: 2019-10-28
Packaged: 2021-01-05 11:26:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 980
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21207755
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kartaylir/pseuds/Kartaylir
Summary: Moon accepts a lesson on tea from Ember and learns more than he bargained for.





	Insight Over Tea

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Jain](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jain/gifts).

Moon was restless. Jade had headed off on another trading expedition a few days back. She was all too happy to take advantage of the influence of a healthy, stable court. And Chime was utterly preoccupied with a different trade that had added several new books to the Mentor's collector. A good sign as to how matters with their ever-expanding selection of allies was going, but it meant a certain shortage of people for Moon to distract himself with.

At first it hadn't been too bad. For a few days he'd contented himself with bothering the hunters, had watched as the Arbora planted a new series of gardens and orchards. One larger platform further up the tree was high enough to reach sunlight unfiltered by countless layers of leaves. Several rarer varieties of plants would thrive there.

With the local dangers both now better understood and watched for, the Arbora didn't really need guards for such tasks. But it did make Moon feel useful. Until he grew bored of the presence of nothing save plants, dirt, and the occasional rustle of leaves.

And then, on the eighth day, he'd given in and accepted one of Ember's requests about tea. 

A certain sense of inadequacy plagued Moon as he considered the situation he'd gotten himself into. Ember seemed so at ease with the fragile pot in his hands. His movements were delicate enough to barely sway the drapery of gold and gems of his shoulders, and the matching set of bracelets barely clanged against each other at all as Ember moved.

It was all quite enough to make Moon feel far less accomplished over how often he'd been wearing clothing without holes in it. Barring the holes it was supposed to have and all that.

"I thought you might want to know enough of the etiquette to prepare this yourself when the court has guests," Ember said. Even his shrug was graceful.

"Why?" Moon leaned back against a pile of pillows, half-admiring the weave of the Arbora-made cloth. "You're not going to embarrass all of us when you do it."

"Stone said you didn't always like to drink other people's tea."

That was...well, in Stone's case being rescued by a flying creature three times Moon's size who'd turned into a grumpy old man had been a little disconcerting. Moon wondered just exactly how Ember had gotten that particular detail out of Stone.

Ember had meanwhile already started to pour the tea while Moon thought, pondering back on tea-related incidents.

_Oh._ Moon froze. His eyes narrowed. "No one's tried to poison me for a while," he said.

Despite that he still felt an urge to bristle his spines and twitch his tail at those memories. Despite the part where he had neither of them at the moment. 

He sat up a little straighter, adjusted the pillows behind him, and then attempted a curious look in Ember's direction. He could hope Ember would appreciate the effort. "How much can you teach me in an evening?"

The answer, unsurprising as it might have been given Ember's nature, had been a lot. Moon would be lucky if he remembered half of it, but even that was far more than a few details he'd put together before. Which combinations of leaves liked warmer or cooler water, combinations of sweeteners and flowers for more fanciful pots. And at least five different ways Moon could intentionally insult someone with the arrangement. Or unintentionally, if he forgot.

They hadn't even started on various ways to assemble the leaves so that they would unfold into patterns as delicate as anything the Arbora placed on the walls. 

"What does this one mean?" Moon asked, staring down at one such arrangement. A few small sticks of some spice floated on the top of the water, creating a pattern of triangles around the unfolded leaves. Something about it felt vaguely familiar, but Moon couldn't place it.

"That you want to sleep with someone. It's a bit formal, and much less common than making up a bower." Ember looked down and carefully swirled the pot. A few more leaves stretched out into what was looking more and more like a flower. "There's other combinations to request a mate for your clutches; I expect the Arbora will start serving you that soon enough."

"I can only drink so much tea," Moon said, grumbling.

Ember was polite enough to stay silent at that. Ember who had..._shit_. Moon suddenly remembered just who had served him that particular tea variant before.

"You could have just asked," Moon said. "It's not as if anyone else has been shy about that."

"I wasn't in a hurry, First Consort."

Of course Ember hadn't been. He fit into his slot so well. All grace and delicate musculature, dripping with jewelry over the warm brown of his skin. Orange and gold the perfect complement to his clothing. And with the perfect, diplomatic words to accentuate all of it.

It made Moon feel like an idiot. Again. He'd been finally getting used to having some idea of what he was doing. And there it went like he'd dropped it off a platform into the bowels of the forest.

"Would you believe me if I told you what perfect conformation you had?" Moon asked. The words felt a little misshapen in his mouth.

"Not yet, First Consort." But Ember set the pot of tea down and leaned in a little closer.

Moon decided he was in a hurry. He shook his head, then grabbed Ember's shoulder with one hand and pulled him over. Just enough that he could give Ember a gentle nip. 

At least he'd learned that way of asking another Raksura to sleep with you pretty quickly.

"Your bower first," Moon said. "You can give me a different sort of lesson."

For that, Ember was impatient enough to abandon the tea. 

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Insight Over Tea [Podfic]](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28415220) by [Fleur Rochard (fleurrochard)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/fleurrochard/pseuds/Fleur%20Rochard)


End file.
